A study commissioned by Farmington elevator manufacturing and maintenance company Otis Worldwide Corp. found the use of air filters and masks greatly reduces the spread of COVID-19 on elevators.
“A short elevator ride represents a relatively low risk of exposure compared to several everyday activities – less than outdoor dining and comparable to a trip to the supermarket – when simple mitigation is in place,” Otis said about the study’s findings.
The three-month study was led by Qingyan (Yan) Chen, a professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue University, according to Otis.
Otis, an independent company that was until recently a subsidiary of the erstwhile United Technologies Corp., has been concerned with safety since the beginning of the pandemic as the company continued to service elevators, said Robin Fiala, Otis’ vice president of marketing and sales.
The company is also releasing a slate of new technology that could reduce transmission risk in elevators. Crews are currently installing new “gesture,” Internet of Things (IoT) and other advanced systems that reduce the need to touch buttons into some clients’ elevators.
